ATLANTA (AP) — Rookie star Ronald Acuna Jr. was back in the lineup for the Atlanta Braves on Thursday

Joey Gallo Jersey , one day after being plunked in the left arm with a pitch that sparked a national debate about whether it’s ever acceptable to throw at a hitter intentionally.Acuna said his elbow felt fine less than 24 hours after he took a 97 mph fastball from Miami’s Jose Urena .Major League Baseball doled out a six-game suspension to the Marlins pitcher.In the opener of an important four-game series against the Colorado Rockies, Acuna received a standing ovation from the crowd at SunTrust Park. He playfully patted umpire Pat Hoberg on his way to the plate and started the bottom of the first with a sharp single up the middle.The 20-year-old phenom finished 1 for 4, snapping a streak of five straight games with a homer that tied a franchise record. In his final chance to set a mark all his own, Acuna lined out to right in the eighth. The Rockies rallied for three unearned runs in the ninth to beat the Braves 5-3, shaving Atlanta’s NL East lead to 1½ games over Philadelphia.As a precaution, Acuna wore a red protective pad on his left arm.“Obviously, it was kind of a hard hit,” Acuna said through a translator after taking an early session of batting practice at SunTrust Park . “But I’m not feeling any pain and I feel good right now.”The Braves breathed a big sigh of relief, knowing what a significant injury would have meant to their postseason chances.Acuna tried to stay in the game after being hit by Urena’s first pitch Wednesday, but he had to leave in the second inning . X-rays taken shortly afterward were negative, and the Braves also ordered a CT scan to make sure their prized rookie was OK. The scan came back normal, and Acuna was cleared to play.With help from multilingual teammate Ender Inciarte, Acuna even crafted a text to Brian Snitker letting the Braves manager know he was ready to go.Snitker, who was ejected the previous night along with Urena for leading a charge from the Atlanta dugout, was clearly relieved.“It’s nice to be 20 and strong,” the manager said with a smile. “I’m as excited as I can be that he gets to go out there and play today.”Acuna has lived up to the hype since being called up by the Braves early in the season. In recent days http://www.rangersfanproshop.com/authentic-matt-moore-jersey , he’s been downright unstoppable with homers in five straight games — including leadoff shots in three straight games before he was struck by Urena’s pitch.The five-game homer streak remained intact under baseball rules because Acuna didn’t have an official at-bat in the finale of the series against the Marlins, which was won by the Braves to complete a four-game sweep . In a quirk of baseball scoring, the leadoff streak ended.Now, both streaks are over.Acuna failed in his bid to become the first Braves player in the modern era to homer in six straight games. The major league record is eight in a row, shared by Ken Griffey Jr. (1993), Don Mattingly (1987) and Dale Long (1956). While Urena insisted he was merely trying to pitch inside to set up Acuna for an outside pitch , Snitker was livid about the incident. The manager said he had no doubt about the Miami right-hander’s intent: It was intentional.“Absolutely,” Snitker said. “Just watching it, I can tell.”It’s long been an unwritten rule in baseball that a hot hitter can expect to be brushed back. Former first baseman Keith Hernandez, now a New York Mets broadcaster, took it a step further by saying the Marlins had every right to bean Acuna under the circumstances .“You’ve lost three games. He’s hit three homers. You’ve got to hit him,” Hernandez said during the Mets-Orioles game. “I’m sorry. People are not going to like that, but you’ve got to hit him.”Snitker scoffed at Hernandez’s logic.“I don’t buy that at all,” the Braves manager said. “I would not ever begrudge somebody for doing the job they’re trying to do. You don’t want him to hit hitters? Pitch better.”Joe Torre, MLB’s chief disciplinary officer, imposed a suspension that would begin Friday unless Urena appeals. The pitcher would have to push back a scheduled start but could make his return against the Braves; the NL East rivals meet in another four-game series at Miami beginning next Thursday.An appeal would likely push back Urena’s next appearance against the Braves to 2019.Torre also handed Braves first base coach Eric Young a one-game suspension for his actions during the melee after both dugouts emptied. Young accepted the punishment and missed Thursday’s game.Colorado manager Bud Black said there will always be a fine line between pitching inside and hitting a batter intentionally.“Hitting home runs is part of the game Ferguson Jenkins Jersey , right? Hitters are trying to hit the ball hard. Pitchers are trying to do everything they can to keep hitters from hitting,” said Black, a former pitcher. “A lot of that is disrupting timing, a lot of that is throwing the ball down and away — tough to hit a homer down there — and some of that is pitching inside aggressively to keep guys from looking out over the plate.”Acuna has really flourished since moving into the leadoff spot right after the All-Star break. He raised his average to .287 with 19 homers, 43 RBIs and nine stolen bases, igniting the Braves with his enthusiasm and seemingly boundless energy while making sure never to show up an opponent.“I feel he’s respecting the game,” Inciarte said. “You don’t want to see anybody getting hit for no reason.” HOUSTON (AP) — With the way Alex Bregman has been swinging the bat lately, Houston Astros manager A.J. Hinch said it’s a shame the team has an off day on Thursday.Bregman homered and had a career-high five RBIs to lead the Astros to a 9-1 win over the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday night. Bregman extended his on-base streak to 33 games, a span where he’s hitting .360 with an on-base percentage of .449.“It’s a step in the right direction, but there’s still so much to improve on and so much to get better at,” Bregman said. “That’s what this game is the best — it’s a game of failure. You can be on top of the world one day and 0-for-4 the next day. You can’t ever get too high or too low.”Evan Gattis also hit his 25th home run of the year in the win.The defending champs have won five straight, finishing a 10-game homestand with a 7-3 record. Houston has won 12 of its last 15 games entering a three-game series in Boston against the team with the best record in baseball.Bregman gave the Astros a 2-0 lead in the third inning with his 29th homer of the season, a line-drive shot off Jake Odorizzi into the left-field Crawford Boxes. He later added a three-run double off the left-field wall with the bases loaded in the eighth inning, his MLB-leading 47th double of the season, to put Houston up 9-1.“He’s putting up so many quality at-bats, one after another http://www.rangersfanproshop.com/authentic-matt-moore-jersey ,” Hinch said. “It’s hard to expect it at this level because it’s not as easy as these guys make it look sometimes, but he’s getting great pitches to hit. He’s not missing them — he’s doing damage.”Gattis extended Houston’s lead to 4-0 with a two-run homer in the fourth inning off Odorizzi, also to left field on the first pitch of his at-bat.Houston went up 5-1 with an RBI single to right from Yuli Gurriel off Odorizzi (5-10), who allowed five runs on four hits and four walks in 4 2/3 innings.“We just had trouble containing some of the guys that are extremely hot right now,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. “Bregman’s probably as hot as anybody I’ve seen for a while in terms of just consistently good at-bats and driving the baseball.”At one point, the Twins even tried a four-man outfield shift against Bregman.Houston starter Framber Valdez (3-1) went 5 1/3 innings, allowing one run on five hits and three walks while striking out five. He’s the first pitcher in club history — and just the sixth in MLB history — to begin his career with four straight appearances of at least 4 1/3 innings, allowing one or fewer runs in each of those outings.Valdez struggled with his accuracy early, throwing two four-pitch walks to his first three batters faced before escaping the first inning with a double play, a turn of events that Valdez later called a “big relief.” The Twins’ lone run off Valdez came in the fifth inning on a solo home run from Willians Astudillo.“He worked out of it, I just held firm,” Hinch said. “I almost got the bullpen up in the first inning. He did work his way through that very weird line for him the first couple of innings because it could have imploded easily on him.”Jose Altuve finally snapped a lengthy hitless streak with a double down the left-field line in the sixth inning that scored George Springer. After striking out in the first inning and popping out in the third, Altuve stretched his hitless streak to 19 at-bats, the longest hitless streak of his career.“I tell you one thing, Jose Altuve is going to be the MVP that he was for the rest of the season,” Bregman said. “He’s a special hitter and he always makes my job a lot easier.”TRAINER’S ROOMTwins: 3B Miguel Sano wanted to take batting practice on Wednesday afternoon Ryan Rua Jersey , but the Twins ultimately held him out as a precaution. Sano was carted off the field Tuesday night with a lower left leg bruise suffered after he slid into second base. He was walking with a limp on Wednesday, but Minnesota manager Paul Molitor said there’s a “good chance” he plays on Friday. . OF Eddie Rosario (sore quadriceps) took batting practice and could return on Friday.Astros: RHP Charlie Morton (shoulder) will likely start for Houston on Saturday in Boston, barring any setback, Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. Morton was placed on the 10-day disabled list on Aug. 29 with right shoulder discomfort. If Morton is unable to start, rookie Josh James will likely start, Hinch said. . RHP Lance McCullers (forearm) threw a brief bullpen session off the mound on Wednesday, Hinch said. . IF/OF Marwin Gonzalez (oblique) and RP Hector Rondon (wrist) are expected to be available for the Boston series, Hinch said.BREGMAN’S BATOver the 10-game homestand, Bregman hit .486 with seven doubles, five homers and 17 RBIs. He has hit four homers in his last five games and has recorded an extra-base hit and an RBI in five straight games, the longest such streak for an Astros hitter since Morgan Ensberg homered in six straight games in April 2006.UP NEXTTwins: Stephen Gonsalves (0-2, 9.90 ERA) will serve as the so-called ‘primary pitcher’ in the Twins’ third attempt at the experimental approach of starting a relief pitcher for an inning or two as an ‘opener’ before a primary pitcher enters. The Twins host Kansas City on Friday.Astros: Gerrit Cole (13-5, 2.86 ERA) will start for Houston when they visit Boston on Friday night for the start of a three-game series. Cole is 1-0 in one start against the Red Sox this season where he went seven innings and allowed three runs, five hits, a walk and seven strikeouts in a 7-3 win on June 1.